10 more in Japan ship virus carriers
BEIJING: Ten more people were sickened with a new virus aboard one of two quarantined cruise ships with some 5,400 passengers and crew aboard, health officials in Japan said Thursday, as China reported 73 more deaths and announced that the first group of patients were expected to start taking a new antiviral drug.
The ships in Japan and Hong Kong are caught up in a global health emergency that seems to worsen by the day.
In the port city of Yokohama, just outside Tokyo, health workers said 10 more people from the Diamond Princess were confirmed ill with the virus, in addition to 10 others who tested positive on Wednesday.
The latest infections included four Japanese, two Americans, two Canadians, one New Zealander and one Taiwanese. Most were in their 60s and 70s.
They were dropped off as the ship docked and transferred to nearby hospitals for further test and treatment.
The 3,700 people on board faced a two-week quarantine in their cabins. The ship had 2,666 passengers and 1,045 crew members. More tests are pending on 171 others who had symptoms or had contact with a man who was diagnosed with the virus after leaving the ship in Hong Kong, the Health Ministry said.
The 3,600 people aboard the Hong Kong ship were also being screened after three passengers on a previous voyage were diagnosed with the virus.
The territory’s beleaguered leader, Carrie Lam, announced that two terminals — including one where the cruise ship is currently quarantined — will be shut down.
The director- general of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, on Wednesday asked for $675 million to help countries address the expected spread of the virus.
He acknowledged that the sum is a lot, but told a news briefing that “it’s much less than the bill we will face if we do not invest in preparedness now.”
Tedros said that in the last 24 hours, the United Nations health agency has seen the biggest jump in cases since the start of the epidemic.
According to the latest figures early Thursday, the number of confirmed cases jumped by 3,694 to 28,018, and the death toll rose to 563. The number of those “discharged and cured” stood at 1,153.
Outside mainland China, at least 240 cases have been confirmed, including two fatalities, one in Hong Kong and another in the Philippines.
South Korea reported four more cases for a total of 23. They included a Chinese tourist and South Koreans whose relatives were infected or were in contact with patients.
The official Xinhua News Agency said clinical trials for the antiviral drug Remdesivir have been approved and the first group of patients are expected to start taking the drug on Thursday.
The stock price of the drug’s maker, American biotechnology company Gilead Sciences Inc., has enjoyed a boost from word of the trials.